Jacksonville City Council member Jim love requested withdrawal of Ordinance 2019-238, his substitute short term rental bill, in response to constituents’ concerns.
“After two rounds of trying to get it right I have come to the conclusion that this subject requires more thought and input and I am out of time,” Love said by e-mail. Love is term-limited and will leave council June 30.
“The Short Term Rental subject is too important to rush. It needs to be done and it needs to cover all the bases and unfortunately both versions did neither,” he wrote.
Love’s District 14 covers Riverside and Avondale, where some homeowners are renting out properties for the short-term.
He held community meetings about regulating the practice.
He altered the bill to address the significant points. The latest changes, introduced June 4 to the council Land Use and Zoning Committee, removed many of the requirements for operating a short-term rental, emphasizing registration, ensuring a point of contact, insurance, paying taxes and operating like any other business.
Riverside Avondale Preservation, after reviewing the substitute bill, requested that Love withdraw the bill, stating the members “have serious concerns about the process that this bill has taken to short cut the proper hearings and/or citizen information meetings that will sufficiently inform the community about the potential impact of this bill on the future of our residential communities.”
Love said in his request for withdrawal to council members and constituents following the bill, that he urges the new council, which takes office July 1, “to take this up in a thoughtful way and do what’s best for Jacksonville.”
The council Land Use and Zoning Committee and the full City Council need to vote to approve the withdrawal. They have the option to proceed with approving the bill.